Most of us know the term of ‘Going Dutch’, meaning that two or more people are splitting the bill in public spaces. In my opinion, this type of saying: Going Dutch doesn’t sound very nice about us (the Dutch people) and so are tons of other expressions including the word “Dutch”, but how Dutch is this Going Dutch actually?

First of all let’s look at the history of this saying; research indicates that it originated during the English-Dutch war around the 17th/18th century. The use of the word Dutch, was only mentioned in negative situations since both countries were at war. Other sayings including the word “Dutch” are: a Dutch Feast (when the host is getting drunk before his/her guests), and a Dutch treat (the part of the bill when it is split).

This year Wrocław is celebrating the 100th anniversary of Centennial Hall will be exactly 100 years old, which will be a great opportunity to celebrate its anniversary throughout the year. Numerous culture, business and sporting events have been planned to honour this special Jubilee. Performance by Matisyahu, a Chasid artist and author of One Day composition, i.e. the Olympic Hymn in Vancouver in 2010, will be one of the first concerts identified with the Hall’s Centennial Anniversary logo. This will only be the beginning of the music events participated by the world famous artists. Various tournaments and competitions will provide sport emotions, and all interested Wroclavians, and guests from Poland and abroad will be able to take part in numerous outdoor events free of charge. The grand Retro Picnic and outstanding new display of the Wrocław Multimedia Fountain should be highlighted among these events.

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Before coming to Wroclaw, my knowledge of Poland didn’t extend far beyond what I had learned in secondary school history. I had little knowledge of Polish culture and customs, and of course I could not speak a word of the language. Before my internship I had never even heard of Wroclaw, so the decision to spend six months here as part of the Transenter internship programme was the perfect opportunity to experience not only a new city, but also a fascinating country and culture.

My biggest worry when coming to Poland was how I would survive as a strict vegetarian – experiences in Russia and France had taught me that a vegetarian lifestyle can be a nightmare when travelling. However, the Polish cuisine was a pleasant surprise: a range of salads, soups, and the guaranteed vegetarian-friendly options of pierogi ruskie, dumplings filled with potato and cottage cheese, and placki ziemniaczane, potato pancakes usually served with a dollop of sour cream.

Now, on to drinks – I was under the impression that nights out in Poland would consist of throwing back multiple vodka shots, but it turns out the Poles are actually very much beer drinkers. Poland is Europe’s third largest beer producer and, according to a 2009 report by Ernst and Young, the average Polish consumer drinks around 92 litres of beer a year! Some of the more well-known brands such as Zywiec and Tyskie are also available in the UK, and in Poland you have a wide range of all kinds of beers – light, full and high strength lagers, sweeter beers such as Piwo Miodowe, a light, honey flavoured beer, and dark lagers. Normally I’m not really a fan of beer, but after six months here I have well and truly been converted!

As I mentioned, before I came here I had never heard of Wroclaw. As it turns out, Wroclaw is really something of a hidden gem – firstly, it’s a beautiful city, and secondly it has a great atmosphere. In my experience, the Poles are generally very friendly, and despite my limited knowledge of Polish people here have always been not only polite and helpful, but also welcoming. Wroclaw is a great city to live in, and during my time here I also visited Krakow and Warsaw, and made a couple of trips to the Polish mountains, which was a great experience. All in all, it’s been a great six months – I’ve had the opportunity to get to know great people, a new language and a fascinating culture.

I would recommend this experience to anyone and I hope that, one day, I will have the opportunity to come back to Poland and see more of this amazing country.